Clark, best known for his roles in classic westerns like THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES & MONTE WALSH, as well as his comic turns in sitcoms like THE JEFF FOXWORTHY SHOW & GRACE UNDER FIRE, celebrates his 87th birthday on November 25th, 2023.
He was born in Washington, D.C. and after a stint in the U.S. Army and a short time at George Washington University, became involved in the D.C. theater scene. Clark later moved to NY where he studied with William Hickey and Herbert Berghof, eventually becoming a member of New York's famed The Living Theatre.
Clark also performed Off-Broadway and was Martin Sheen's understudy for Broadway's THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES. Clark later directed his pal Sheen in a couple of projects.
He made his film debut in 1964's BLACK LIKE ME, playing ''Mugger in Alley''.
Clark's first film role of note was playing Scott Wilson's pal Packy in the Oscar-Winning 1967 Best Picture IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT, directed by Norman Jewison.
For the next 30+ years, Clark worked with such other top directors as Clint Eastwood, Robert Aldrich, Sam Peckinpah, John Huston, Don Siegel, Mark Rydell, Philip Kaufman, Sydney Pollack, Mike Hodges, Walter Hill and Stuart Rosenberg, who cast Clark in 4 films.
With Robert Redford in Rosenberg's 1980 prison drama
BRUBAKER
Tall & lean, with an often gloomy look on his face, Clark played key supporting roles in some of the the best oaters and action films of the 1970's, often playing rednecks, cowboys, outlaws, sheriffs, cops, gangsters, etc. with name's like Dude, Billy Bob and Nick the Grub.
My Clark favorites include:
One of the many real-life men of history he has played--
doomed Deputy J.W. Bell--about to be 'shot to hell' by Kris Kristofferson in
Sam Peckinpah's elegiac 1973 western classic (not the short 106 min. version, but either the 122 min. Original Preview or 115 min. Special Edition version) PAT GARRETT AND BILLY THE KID
Moonshiner Dude Watson in WHITE LIGHTNING
with Burt Reynolds
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The good-natured, tall-tale-telling cowpuncher Pete, who runs afoul of touchy, mean & crazy Geoffrey Lewis in one of my favorite cowboy flicks THE CULPEPPER CATTLE CO.
One of the 1970's best acting ensembles:
Front Row--L to R
Wayne Sutherlin, Bo Hopkins, Billy Green Bush, Clark, Bob Orrison & Raymond Guth
Top Row--L to R
Luke Askew, Hal Needham, Jerry Gatlin, Walter Scott, Lewis and Gary Grimes
Nervous kidnapper Joe Bailey who runs afoul of THE GRISSOM GANG,
getting a knife in his back from his old IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT buddy
Scott Wilson
The barfly Kelly in Clint Eastwood's brilliant western
THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES
Notorious Outlaw brother Bob Younger in Philip Kaufman's gritty & grimy revisionist western THE GREAT NORTHFIELD MINNESOTA RAID
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With Cliff Robertson (Cole Younger) and R.G. Armstrong (Clell Miller) in
GREAT NORTHFIELD
Red Plainclothesman, who clashes with his reckless boss, The Detective (Bruce Dern), over police methods while chasing after THE DRIVER (Ryan O'Neal)
Also: Smiley, one of the ranch hands who abandon John Wayne in THE COWBOYS, Romulus Quint, one of crazy, sadistic killer Preacher Quint's (Donald Pleasance) brood of cutthroats in WILL PENNY, Rufus Brady, a cowpoke who goes bad in MONTE WALSH, the soldier Scroggins in Don Siegel's THE BEGUILED with Clint Eastwood, the settler Qualen in JEREMIAH JOHNSON, the railroad worker Yardlett in Robert Aldrich's forgotten hobo/depression era classic EMPEROR OF THE NORTH (POLE), the aforementioned Nick the Grub in THE LIFE AND TIMES OF JUDGE ROY BEAN, Buffalo Bill Cody in the tele-film THIS IS THE WEST THAT WAS, gangster Verne Miller in the classic TV movie THE KANSAS CITY MASSACRE, prison trustee Roy Purcell in BRUBAKER, the Secretary of Defense in THE ADVENTURES OF BUCKAROO BANZAI ACROSS THE 8TH DIMENSION, Uncle Henry in RETURN TO OZ, Honore Thibideaux in CANDYMAN: FAREWELL TO THE FLESH, Judge Symes in CLASS ACTION, Sheriff Kroopf in HOMEGROWN and Chester the Bartender in BACK TO FUTURE III.
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Hal Baylor, Clark and Vic Tayback in
EMPEROR OF THE NORTH
BACK TO THE FUTURE III
I loved that TV film as a kid!
With David BONANZA Canary in
THE KANSAS CITY MASSACRE
BRUBAKER
Clark regular TV runs include Kim Basinger & Lou Antonio's boss in the short-lived 1977 cop show DOG AND CAT, heating and air conditioning employee Walt Bacon for one season of THE JEFF FOXWORTHY SHOW (1995-96) and also the recurring role of Brett Butler's former father-in-law, Emmett Kelly, on the sitcom GRACE UNDER FIRE.
His other notable film and TV credits include:
HONKYTONK MAN, THE BRIDGE AT REMAGEN, MACHO CALLAHAN, THE LAUGHING POLICEMAN, POCKET MONEY, THE WALTONS, THE EXECUTION OF PRIVATE SLOVIK with bud Martin Sheen, MELVIN PURVIS G-MAN, THE TERMINAL MAN, THE GREAT ICE RIP-OFF, HEARTS OF THE WEST, KID VENGEANCE, OUTLAW BLUES, LACY AND THE MISSISSIPPI QUEEN, LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE, DREAMER, THE LAST RIDE OF THE DALTON GANG, SOME KIND OF HERO, IN THE CUSTODY OF STRANGERS, THE LEGEND OF THE LONE RANGER, AN EYE FOR AN EYE (1981), DYNASTY, RUCKUS, LOVE LETTERS, COUNTRY, TUFF TURF, WALKER TEXAS RANGER, OUT OF THE DARKNESS, LET'S GET HARRY, THE QUICK AND THE DEAD (1987), KENNY ROGERS AS THE GAMBLER: THE LEGEND CONTINUES, TERROR ON HIGHWAY 91, THE HORROR SHOW, CADENCE (another Sheen film), THE HARVEST, FROZEN ASSETS, BARBARIANS AT THE GATE, DEAD BEFORE DAWN, A SEASON OF HOPE, TRILOGY OF TERROR II, LONESOME DOVE: THE OUTLAW YEARS, CRAZY FOR A KISS, HACKS, CLAUDINE'S RETURN, FIVE ACES, KILLER DILLER, HONKY, SOUTH OF HEAVEN, WEST OF HELL and more.
THE TERMINAL MAN
RUCKUS
Clark also had the distinction of appearing in both Herman Wouk's THE WINDS OF WAR & WAR AND REMEMBRANCE, playing a different character in each mini-series.
He also did a bit of directing.
Clark helmed the 1988 big screen adaptation of Hugh Leonard's play DA
with Martin Sheen, Barnard Hughes and Clark's old acting teacher William Hickey, as well as a couple of episodes of the series MIDNIGHT CALLER and a CBS SCHOOLBREAK SPECIAL that starred Sheen as well.
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Did you know...?
Married 3 times, Clark has 4 children.
His son Jason has produced such films as THE CABIN IN THE WOODS, 42, TED, TED 2, A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST, MONSTER HOUSE and RED STATE.
Clark's other kids are film editor Seth Clark (ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, ROCKY BALBOA, 3 NIGHTS IN THE DESERT, NOT SAFE WITH NIKKI GLASER, ), musician Matthias Clark and his daughter, producer/ writer Aimee Clark (THE SCHOOL TEACHER).
Clark on film:
Spoiler Alert!
Clark's death scene in PAT GARRETT AND BILLY THE KID Rated R!
15 Mins. of THE DRIVER
Scene from WHITE LIGHTNING
Scene from BACK TO THE FUTURE III
Scene from THE OUTLAW JOSEY WALES
Trailer for DA
More on Clark:
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